Selector switch with adjustable camming means providing a programmed switch action



Aug. 12, 19 K. K. FERRYMAN. JR 3,461,256

SELECTOR SWITCH WITH ADJUSTABLE CAMMING MEANS PROVIDING A PROGRAMMED SWITCH ACTIGN 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 13. 1967 IN VEN TOR.

ATT RNE S Aug. 12. 969 K. K. FERRYMAN. JR 3,

SELECTOR SWITCH WITH ADJUSTABLE CAMMING MEANS PROVIDING A PROGRAMMED SWITCH ACTION F iled Nov. 13. 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1N VEN'TOR.

BY zmkm ATTORNEY KENNETH KFERRYMAMJ United States Patent 3,461,256 SELECTOR SWITCH WITH ADJUSTABLE CAM- MING MEANS PROVIDING A PROGRAMMED SWITCH ACTION Kenneth K. Ferryinan, In, St. Clair Shores, Mich., as-

signor to Essex Wire Corporation, Fort Wayne, IntL, a corporation of Michigan Filed Nov. 13, 1967, Ser. No. 682,301 Int. Cl. Hillh 9/06 US. Cl. ZOO-61.88 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An improved selector switch for activating the start, ignition and backup circuits in an automobile. The selec tor switch is attached to the steering column and is actuated by the gear selector lever of the automobile. The gear selector lever drives a carrier which is slidably mounted in the switch housing. The carrier has a number of contacts mounted thereon which close or open the different circuits as the gear lever causes the carrier to change positions. Variously positioned cams on the inside of the selector switch housing cause the contacts to open and close at programmed positions. An adjustable cam is provided which permits program adjustment of selector switch contact positions for each individual automobile.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a selector switch, and more particularly to an adjustable selector switch actuated by an automobile gear shift lever for use with the ignition or backup light circuits.

In most automobiles the gear shift lever is utilized to drive a switch which activates the ignition and backup light circuits. For example, the U8. Patent No. 3,189,- 701, issued to W. L. Brown, on June 15, 1965, discloses a rotary switch which is activated by the gear selector lever. When the gear selector lever is in the neutral or park position, contacts close the circuits to the starter motor. When the gear selector is moved out of the neutral or park positions, the starter motor circuit is deactivated. Similarly, the circuit activating the backup lights is closed whenever the gear shift lever indicates reverse.

The rotary switch assembly of Brown is mounted on the steering column and once properly aligned with the gear shift lever provides accurate switching. Alignment of the selector switch is a difficult problem. The switch must, in some manner, be correlated to the position of the gear shift lever. Furthermore, each automobile gear shift lever will have some play and vary in some degree in its positions relative to gear shift levers in other automobiles of the same model. For this reason it is desirable to have a selector switch which can be mounted and adjusted to account for the differences in construction of each individual automobile.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In a principal aspect, the selector switch of the present invention comprises a movable electrical contact member which is biased alternately against a terminal member to close the electrical circuit or a cam surface to open the circuit.

More particularly, an embodiment of the selector switch of the present invention comprises a housing having a contact carrier member slidably mounted therein. First and second spring biased contacts are attached to the contact carrier. As the contact carrier slides back and forth in the housing, the contacts engage terminals mounted on the interior walls of the housing. Cams are integrally molded into the housing to cause the contacts "ice to engage and alternately disengage the terminals dependmg upon the position of the sliding contact carrier. Ar adjustable camming means is also provided on the interior of the housing. Together the integral and adjustable cainming means provide a programmed switch action for each automobile or other device with which the selector switch might be used.

It is thus an object of the present invention to provide an improved selector switch.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a selector switch having a simplified construction which can be manufactured at a low cost.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a selector switch which is especially useful in combination with automobile ignition and backup light circuits.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a selector switch which can be adjusted for each individual automobile.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be set forth with greater particularity in the detailed description which follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIGURE 1 is an exploded perspective View of the improved selector switch;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the assembled selector switch positioned on a typical automobile steering column;

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the improved selector switch;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 44 at FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 5 is a front plan view of the improved selector switch; and

FIGURE 6 is a partial front plan view illustrating the various positions of the contacts as the contact carrier slides in the housing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIGURE 1 is an exploded perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The compo- 1 nents, comprising the switch, both temporary and perma nent, include and are enclosed or attached to the housing 10. Housing 10 is fabricated or molded from a non-conductive material, preferably nylon. Housing 10 is comprised of an upper wall 12 and a lower wall 14 each having an inside bearing surface 16 and 18 respectively. Housing 10 has a left hand side wall 20 and a right hand side wall 22 and a back wall 24. Molded integrally together, the walls comprise the housing 10 having an open front side. Upper bearing surface 16 and lower bearing surface 18 are more clearly shown in the front cross sectional view of FIGURE 6.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 4, 5 and 6, slidably inserted through slots in the rear wall 24 of the housing 10 are first and second reverse circuit terminals 26 and 28 respectively. Terminals 26 and 28 are mounted flush against the upper and lower bearing surfaces 18 and 16 respectively. The second reverse circuit terminal 28 is mounted between a first cam 30 and a second cam 32 which are defined in the upper bearing surface 16. The first reverse circuit terminal 26 is mounted adjacent the third cam 34 which is defined in the bearing surface 18. The first reverse circuit terminal 26 is directly opposite the second reverse circuit terminal 28.

The first and second neutral-part start terminals 36 and 38 are likewise mounted flush against the lower bearing surface 18 and the upper bearing surface 16 respectively. The four terminals 26, 28, 36 and 38 each have an end tab which is crimped over into notches 27, 29, 37 and 39 respectively in the housing 10 as shown most 3 clearly in FIG. 4. The terminals 26, 28, 36 and 38 are fabricated from a conductive material such as copper, its alloys, or aluminum.

The reverse circuit terminals 26 and 28 are secured in position by the cooperation of the flanges (31 and 33 on terminal 28, 41 and 43 on terminal 26) with the crimpedover ends of the terminals 28 and 26 in the notches 29 and 27. The neutral park start terminals 36 and 38 are secured in position by the cooperation of the angled portions (45 on terminal 36, 47 on terminal 38) of the terminals 36 and 38 with the crimped over portions of the terminals 36 and 38 in the notches 37 and 39, respectively.

Referring now to both FIGS. 1 and 6, an adjustable cam 40 is slidably snapped into position in the channels 42 and 44 defined in the upper wall 12 and the lower wall 14 respectively of the housing adjacent the left hand side wall 20. The adjustable cam has a fourth camming surface 46 and a fifth camming surface 48 defined in the planes of the upper bearing surface 16 and the lower bearing surface 18, respectively. The combination of the various cams 30, 32, 34, 36 and 48, terminals 26, 28, 36 and 38, and the bearing surfaces 16 and 18 defines a sliding channel for the contacts and carrier to be described more fully below.

A rivet 50 passes through a biasing washer 52 to attach a first and a second contact 54 and 56 to a carrier 58. The first and second contacts 54 and 56 are rotatable against the friction due to washer 52 about the axis of the rivet 50 and are biased in opposite directions by a contact biasing spring 60. The spring 60 engages the ends 62 and 64 of the contacts 56 and 54 respectively.

The carrier 58 and its attached contacts 54 and 56 are slidably mounted on the interior of the housing 10. The first and second contacts 54 and 56 are thus biased by the contact biasing spring 60 against the upper and lower bearing surfaces 16 and 18 or their flush mounted terminals 26, 28, 36 or 38 or the cams 30, 32, 34, 46 or 48.

The tang 85 of clip 84 is to be inserted through a rectangular slot 81 in FIG. 6 in the back wall 24 of the housing 10 in such a manner as to allow opening 83 in tang 85 to come into line with guide rod slot 72 on the inside of the back wall 245A guide rode 66 with a washer configuration 68 attached to one end is inserted into the opening 83 in the tang 85 to prevent guide rod 66 from disengaging from housing 10. This also prevents clip 84 from disengaging housing 10 when clip 84 is not engaged with adjustable cam 40. The guide rod is slidably inserted along with a concentric compression spring 74 through the passageway 76 defined in the carrier 58. The compression spring 74 thus guided by the guide rod 66 forces the carrier 58 to a position substantially abutting the right hand side wall 22 of the housing 10.

While in this position a pin 78 is inserted through the aperture 80 in the upper wall 16 of the housing 10. The pin 78 passes through the slot 82 in the carrier 58 and holds the carrier 58 in a substantially immovable position. The pin 78 is a temporary part in comparison with the other parts of the invention heretofore mentioned which are permanent parts.

FIG. 3 more clearly illustrates the insertion of the pin 78 through the housing 10 and into the carrier 58 positioned within the housing 10. The pin has a broad head 181 and a restricted portion 183 which may be easily fitted into the aperture 80. The head 181 prevents complete insertion of the pin 78 and facilitates easy removal as will be described later.

The adjustable cam 40 is held in position by the clip 84 which slidably engages the housing 10. The clip 84 has biased flaps 86 and 88 which pass through the slots or openings 90 and 92 respectively in the upper wall 12 and lower wall 14 of the housing 10. The clip pin 94 holds the biased flaps 80 and 88 from complete penetration of the slots 90 and 92 thus preventing penetration of the flaps 86 and 88 into the adjustable cam 40. By removing the clip pin 94 the flaps 86 and 88 push completely through the slots and 92 and firmly engage the adjustable cam 40 thereby preventing its further movement. The clip is constructed of a resilient metal material such as spring steel. The adjustable cam 40 is preferably constructed of nylon, a material which the clip material can easily penetrate and grasp.

FIG. 3 illustrates the manner in which the clip pin 94 spreads the flaps 86 and 88 thereby preventing locking of the adjustable cam 40. The clip pin 94 is also a temporary part as is the pin 78. Thus upon removal as described below, both the pin 78 and clip pin 94 may be discarded.

The assembled selector or slide switch is attached to the steering column of an automobile as shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 shows the improved selector switch with a metal cover plate 96 attached over the open face of the switch. The bracket ends 98 and 100 are curved to conform with the cylindrical shape of the steering column 102. The gear shift lever 104 rests against the bar 106 which has been fastened in the slot 108 in the carrier 58. The slot 108 is more clearly illustrated in FIG. 4 and FIG. 1. Clamp means (not shown) secure the switch against the steering column 102.

To install the selector switch in a custom arrangement for each automobile, the gear shift lever is placed in the neutral position as indicated in FIG. 2. The selector switch is then clamped to the steering column 102 with the bar 106 resting securely against the gear shift lever 104. The carrier (not shown in FIG. 2) has been locked in position by the pin 78 so that the gear shift lever 104 cannot be moved freely from the neutral to the park or reverse positions once the selector switch is first installed. After the selector switch is clamped down securely the pin 78 is removed and the gear shift lever 104 is moved to the extreme counterclockwise, park position. This causes the bar 106 to slide transversely in the slot 110 to the left in FIG. 2.

Once the gear shift lever 104 is in this extreme counterclockwise position, the gear shift lever 104 must then be moved to its extreme clockwise position. After the aforementioned procedure has been completed, the clip pin 94 (not shown in FIG. 2) is pulled from its temporary position illustrated in FIG. 3 to allow the biased end flaps 86 and 88 of the clip 84 to spring through the slots 90 and 92 and engage the adjustable cam 40. The moving of the gear shift lever to the park position as outlined has positioned the adjustable cam 40 in a precise and custom manner for the particular automobile in which that particular selector switch is installed. Removal of the clip pin 94 assures that the position of the adjustable cam 40 will be retained.

Thus the pin 78 and the clip pin 94 are the temporary components of the selector switch which are removed once the switch is permanently installed in the automobile. The pin 78 and clip pin 94 serve to precisely position and program the selector switch, and having accomplished this end, they are removed.

FIG. 6 illustrates the programmed action of the selector switch. There is indicated a number of positions of the contacts 54 and 56 as the contacts are traversed from neutral through reverse and park positions. For example, position P is the neutral position. This is the position in which the pin 78 locks the carrier before the selector switch is installed in the automobile. In this position the contacts 54 and 56 electrically connect the first and second neutral-start park start terminals 36 and 38.

The next position illustrated occurs as the carrier and the contacts slide from the right toward the left in the housing 10. That is, position P wherein the cam 32 causes all circuits to open. The first contact 54 .is thus no longer in electrical connection with the first neutral-park start terminal 36. The cam 32 coincides with the positioning of the gear shift lever between the neutral and reverse positions.

The next position is the reverse position indicated by position P In this position both of the contacts 54 and 56 are in contact with the terminals 28 and 26 respectively. These terminals are connected to the back-up light circuit which is activated when the gear shift lever is indicated to be in the reverse position.

The next position, position P corresponds to the positioning of the gear shift lever 104 between the reverse and park positions. The cams 30 and 34 along with the earns 46 and 48 of the adjustable cam coact to break the electrical contact of the first and second contacts 54 and 56 with the first and second neutral-park start terminals 36 and 38.

Once the contacts have traversed to a position beyond the adjustable cams 48 and 46, the contacts 54 and 56 complete the electrical circuit between terminals 36 and 38 thereby permitting the ignition circuit to be activated. This is indicated as position P Traversing the carriage in the opposite direction, of course, produces the same results in the reverse sequence.

Because the adjustable cam 40 is positioned after the selector switch is incorporated into the automobile, the selector switch is customized to each automobile. Each automobile thus has its own programmed selector switch. This arrangement takes into account tolerances and play in the gear shift arrangement of an automobile.

While in the foregoing there has been presented a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is to be understood that all those embodiments obvious to persons skilled in the art and all equivalents thereof are to be included within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. A selector switch mechanism for alternatively opening and closing an electrical circuit comprising in combination:

a switch housing;

at least one movable electrical contact member in said housing;

first electric circuit means connected to said contact member;

at least one electrical terminal member in said housing and positioned to be engaged by said contact member;

second electric circuit means connected to said terminal member;

biasing means for biasing said contact member against said terminal member; channel guide means in said housing; adjustable camming means movably positioned in said channel guide means for adjustable engagement of said camming means with said contact member; and

drive means for driving said contact member into said engagement position with said terminal member, to close said electrical circuit and alternatively into engagement position with said adjustable camming means to open said electrical circuit.

2. The combination of claim 1 including removable locking means for locking said contact in a fixed position prior to permanent installation of said selector switch.

3. The combination of claim 1 including fastening means for fastening said adjustable camming means in a fixed position in said housing.

4. The combination of claim 1 including carrier and guide means for carrying and guiding said contact traversely in said housing.

5. The combination of claim 1 including additional fixed camming means to engage said slidably mounted contact means and provide programmed switch action.

6. A selector switch comprising, in combination:

a housing having an inside bearing surface with channel guide means defined therein;

adjustable camming means adjustably mounted in said channel guide means;

at least one electric terminal member mounted in said housing; and

at least one contact member slidably mounted in said housing to alternately engage said terminal and said adjustable camming means to provide a programmed switch action.

7. The selector switch of claim 6 including fastening means for securing said adjustable camming means in a fixed position in said housing.

8. The combination of claim 6 wherein said camming means comprise a first and a second camming surface integrally molded in coplanar relation on the inside bearing surface and a third camming surface integrally molded on said inside bearing surface, said third camming surface being oppositely disposed from said first camming surface to coact therewith; said terminals comprise a first and second terminal oppositely disposed of one another and mounted on said inside bearing surface adjacent one side of said first and third cams respectively, and a third and a fourth terminal oppositely disposed one another and mounted on said inside bearing surface adjacent the other side of said first and third cams respectively; said contacts comprise a pair of scissor-type contacts biased to bear on said terminals or said cams, said contacts being mounted on a spring biased carrier such that said contacts slidably engage said terminals and said cams alternatively, said carrier having an arm for engaging a gear shift lever which transverse movement can be imparted to said contacts for engaging a gear shift lever and said adjustable cam means comprise first and second oppositely disposed adjustable cams mounted abutting said inside bearing surface respectively, said first and second adjustable cams being substantially coplanar with said first and second, and said third camming surfaces respectively.

9. A switch mechanism comprising, in combination:

a housing including channel means;

a contact mechanism including first and second mechanically coupled electrical conductors, said mechanism being mounted for translational movement with respect to said housing;

first and second electrical terminals rigidly attached to said housing, one of said terminals positioned in the path of movement of said first electrical conductor;

means for connecting said second electrical conductor to said other terminal; and

a cam lobe movably mounted in said channel means of said housing in the path of said first electrical conductor, said cam lobe being adjustable to vary the point at which said first electrical conductor and said lobe engage during translational movement of said contact mechanism to thereby disengage said first conductor from one of said terminals and break a closed circuit.

10. The switch mechanism of claim 9 including fastening means for securing said adjustable cam lobe in a fixed position in said housing.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,152,450 3/1939 Arcelon.

2,894,089 7/1959 Newcomb 200-61.54 2,993,968 7/1961 Ellithorpe 20016 3,210,503 10/ 1965 Hummel 200-466 3,299,226 1/1967 Edwards 200-16 2,769,064 10/1956 Rowe ZOO-153.11 X

FOREIGN PATENTS 1,177,719 9/1964 Germany.

ROBERT K. SCHAEFER, Primary Examiner R. A. VANDERHYE, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 

